The Gates

I went to the Gates, the Cristo creation back in 2005, only once, but the experience lingered long after it ended (I even saw the director Al Maysles filming, oddly enough this time, changing his perspective, on mini-DV as opposed to film). It's a lush setting, maybe too lush, and full of the kind of vibrancy and other things to describe it that would take too long or sound too pretentious in this review. Suffice to say if you remembered what it was like, or were there, Maysles gets a superb lot of interviews- some, of course, with Cristo and Jean-Claude his wife/business partner as he does for all of the Cristo art movies- with just people who are walking around the park, people who go there frequently, tourists, foreigners, workers. And the images are sublime; film might have captured it in the best possible way, but on digital there's another level brought out. All those waving flags of orange, put to the backdrop of snow and dead trees and Central Park fixtures and landmarks have a rough but beautiful, crystal-perfect quality. I loved seeing those images again, and with such a sharp eye and mind that knows where to go for the right (or simply unexpected) detail and make it personal and true to expressing the spirit of Cristo, whatever that might be (open to interpretation for absolute certainty).

The documentary plays now and again on HBO (it did for about a month or so early in 2008), but if you can somehow find it on DVD it's a worthwhile purchase. Very few works from Cristo reach this ambition and, in fact, sublime manner in execution.

This is SUCH a great documentary about New York City -- to me, that's what this brought home. Yes, it's about Christo and history and art and Central Park (my home away from home) but really it's a love poem to NYC and her inhabitants. The cranky old (and young) people, the curious ones, the playful ones . . . it has all the New York types.

I had no idea it was by a Maysles until I heard one of the Christo's greet a "Brother Maysles!" And you can hear him talking to Christo at one point, making a joke about, "If someone manages to steal one and takes it on the subway, make sure I'm there with a camera." It's yet another of their masterpieces.

And I just loved all the old footage from '79 or so, then got total goosebumps with the footage of the morning it opened. ahh, dawn in Central Park! snow in Central Park! night in Central Park. Christo in Central Park! and all caught by a cinematic master!

The film starts out really good. It reminds of of an old Maysles bros film. It has the unassuming over the shoulder shots as we see Christo and Jean-Claude trying to get their art in Central Park. We see the behind the scenes politics that goes into one of these things. Seeing the controversy and how the Park members react to decorating the park is very fascinating. Unfortunately, the project did not go through in the 80's. If it did, we might have had a good documentary.

Instead, we are treated to a very banal 60 or so other minutes of the film. Most of the time is spent talking to people on the streets. They try to do a three act kind of thing by showing people against the gates and a few little problems during the implementation of the project. The whole thing takes on a kind of reality show feel.

When the gates finally get up, we only get positive views from the NY inhabitants. And, we get many shots of the gates. It seems like some of the same shots are done over again. Suddenly the gates (which used to seem flowery and easy) take on a banal quality. All we see is orange over and over. Its kind of looking at trees in a forest for 90 minutes. After a while, it all starts to look the same.

What's this all about? Is it art? Is it desecrating the park? Well there's a lot of orange anyway. It's modern and eclectic. It's worth watching just to see the absurd level of opposition it generates – and everybody searches for reasons to oppose it – it's New York after all. Kudos to Mayor Bloomberg who said "Let's Do It". After all it's only for a few weeks in February and it gave colour to the park. As one women said - "most people gaze at pictures in a gallery for less than a minute before moving on – but with this pervasive display – if you are in the Park – you are in it". It's everywhere. It's public – it can be "enjoyed" or "detested" by all and sundry.

I was a little confused at the beginning because there is a short segment where Christo and Jeanne-Claude proposed their exhibition in the early 80's and it was rejected by numerous groups for innumerable reasons. Then we move to the 21st century.

There are beautiful images of Central Park through-out (but perhaps a little too much orange flapping in the breeze).

Such a great flick.

As a great documentary in and of itself, but also as a great new york city-movie, showcasing NYC's bureaucratic madness during the planning stage, but also its incredible diversity, and how it was the only real city where a project like this COULD happen and resonate quite like it does.

Its also a great 'artiste' movie, in both the role of the artist and the dogged determination required to fulfill your passions, as Christo and his wife Jean-Claude worked since 1979 on this, but also the role of art, at least on a grand scale, in todays world...maybe more than anything, The Gates really shows the irrationality of haters and naysayers in the face of art...some of the negative arguments and reactions to the project in hindsight appear moronic and embarrassing, and Mayor Bloomberg should be commended for finally giving the go-ahead and making this possible.

And visually, once the gates are up, with all the reactions of the people against that winter backdrop, the film truly becomes transcendent, and becomes a stunningly beautiful and touching work of art itself.

Multi-thumbs up.